Remember Me
by The Flying Red Panda
Summary: He doesn't know her name, and he's never spoken to her before, yet every time he sees her, butterflies start tap dancing in his stomach. His heart insists he knows this girl, but his brain disagrees. Is it possible to remember someone you've never met?


Nigel nervously tugged on his red shirt, his eyes scanning the crowd. He slowly ran a hand over his short brown hair, marveling at the feel of it. He had only recently acquired his hair, and still wasn't quite used to it yet.

Some long forgotten childhood accident had made him bald. He still wasn't exactly sure _how _that had happened – all he could remember was splashes of blue and a panicked feeling – and he wasn't exactly sure _when _his hair had started growing back. Not for a long time, he assumed, although it was hard to know for sure, due to the fact that he couldn't seem to remember _anything _about when he was a kid.

Nigel sighed again as he adjusted the sunglasses placed on his head _(why he wore them he wasn't sure, it was a habit more then anything). _Right now he had bigger problems then his missing childhood.

He was going to _kill _Wally.

Music pounded through the air as hyped up, sweaty teens moved to the beat. Standing by the wall, Nigel felt out of place as he watched the others dance.

He had only come as a favor to Wally. Wally had practically gotten on his knees and _begged _him to come. Though a fairly decent dancer, Wally_ (like Nigel)_ was _not _a fan of school dances. However, all it took was Kuki Sanban's casual question _(You're going to tonight's dance right?) _to change Wally's mind.

Nigel had reluctantly agreed, both to give Wally a push in the right direction _(honestly, the boy was as subtle as a semi-truck) _and to act as damage control. Wally tended to get a little… _protective _when other boys showed interest in Kuki. And because Kuki was a very attractive girl, Wally's patience was tested a lot.

Nigel crossed his arms and sighed as he leaned against the wall. He and Wally hadn't even been there ten _minutes _when Kuki skipped up, shyly asking Wally to dance.

Nigel chuckled to himself in remembrance. Wally had looked as though someone had clubbed him over the head. A blush had spread across his cheeks, and his hands had jumped to his hair. It had taken a little while for him to regain enough composure to say yes. Finally, however, he was able to follow Kuki to the dance floor, tripping once or twice due to nerves.

That was an hour ago. The two hadn't danced with anyone else yet, and they showed no sign of separating. Nigel was happy for his friend, but was starting to feel a little resentful at being left alone.

At one point Hoagie had joined him, a glass of punch in hand. However, Nigel quickly noticed that the majority of Hoagie's attention was focused on Abigail Lincoln, one of the coolest and prettiest girls in school. After a lot of persuading, Hoagie had asked Abby to dance. To his, and many others, surprise, she had said yes. Nigel knew he didn't have a prayer of seeing Hoagie after that.

Nigel sighed again, crossing his arms tighter, his eyes scanning the room.

He _hated _being the wallflower. He'd rather be at home, or the arcade, or even _dancing_. Anything but standing awkwardly in the corner, trying to pretend he didn't care that everyone else was having a good time.

A splash of gold caught his eye.

The pretty blonde girl who sat next to him in science was dancing with a football player. Nigel felt his breath catch.

She was _beautiful. _

He couldn't understand it – he'd never gave her a second glance, but now he couldn't seem to take his eyes off her, watching her as she swayed gracefully.

Her baby blue eyes sparkled, and at one point she laughed. He wondered what her laugh sounded like, and realized with a start he didn't even know her name.

When the song ended, the girl waved goodbye to her partner, and walked to the sidelines with a friend, giggling the whole time.

Nigel's eyes followed her. In the middle of her conversation with her friend the girl looked up, her eyes connecting with his.

Nigel quickly blushed and lowered his gaze, unaware that the girl had just mimicked his motions.

Nigel took a deep breath, his eyes continuing to follow the blonde girl. She had rejoined the dance floor, and was now dancing with a different guy. _(Also a football player. What was his name? Pat? Patty? Patton.) _

Nigel watched enviously as Patton twirled the girl. She looked so carefree…

Even after the dance ended, he watched her. Again she found a new partner. It seemed as though she had a new partner for every song.

_(And he would be the next) _

Quickly, before he could chicken out, he walked in her direction, his sweaty palms pushed deep into his pant pockets.

Gathering his courage, he tapped her shoulder. She turned towards him, her eyes sparkling, her breathing a little heavy.

"Wannadancewithme?"

"I'm sorry?" she said, running a hand through her hair, her eyebrows pushed together slightly.

Nigel cleared his throat. "Will you dance with me?"

He felt her eyes appraising him, scanning him.

"Sure." she said, a small smile gracing her pretty face. The knot in Nigel's stomach unclenched, only to clench up again when her hand softly grasped his shoulder. He slowly wrapped his arms around her, standing back slightly, unsure of what was okay. He felt her sigh slightly. She tugged lightly on his shoulders, pulling him closer.

Nigel felt himself blush. The girl was pressed lightly into his chest, her arms around his neck, his arms around her waist. He glanced around, his eyes landing on Hoagie and Abby dancing.

Hoagie grinned at him over Abby's shoulder and mouthed_ "Nice one."_

Nigel grinned back.

"I'm Nigel, by the way." said Nigel as he turned back to the girl, mentally congratulating himself for not stuttering.

"Rachael."

"That's a pretty name."

"Thank you." said Rachael, smiling up at him.

The two swayed slowly to the music. Nigel's heart was beating quickly; he was sure Rachael could feel it.

"Uh," said Nigel in an attempt to fill the awkward silence that had fallen, "do you play any sports?"

"Track and volleyball." replied Rachael. "You?"

"Football." said Nigel. "I'm a goalie."

Rachael looked up at Nigel, one eyebrow raised, confusion spread across her face.

"But…" said Rachael "There're no goalies in football."

"Sure there are." said Nigel. "You know, they stop the ball from going in the net."

"There's no nets in football." said Rachael. "And there's _definitely _no goalies."

The awkward silence fell again.

"_Ohhh_." said Nigel suddenly, earning a confused look from Rachael. "I play _soccer_. We call it football in England."

Rachael giggled. "England huh? How long ago did you live there?"

"I was born there." said Nigel "I moved here when I was three."

"But you still have an accent."

"It's kind of strange I guess." shrugged Nigel "I mean, I should have an American accent right? But I don't. My parents still have _their _accents though, so maybe that's a contributing factor."

"I like your accent." said Rachael, blushing slightly. "It's really cool…sort of like James Bond's y'know?"

"James Bond huh?" grinned Nigel. "I never really thought I was _that _sophisticated, but I'll take what I can get."

Rachael laughed. It was a very pretty laugh, decided Nigel. It was soft and melodic, and Nigel couldn't help but notice how her eyes lit up.

"So you moved here when you were three?" repeated Rachael. "Did you ever go back to visit?"

Nigel's brow furrowed. "You know, this is gonna sound really weird, but…" he shrugged. "I don't know."

"You don't know?" Rachael raised an eyebrow.

"I can't remember anything about my childhood." admitted Nigel. The song ended and another one started. Neither one noticed.

"Really?" Rachael narrowed her brows "That's weird…"

"I know." sighed Nigel.

"…'cause I can't either."

Nigel felt his eyebrows rise.

"_Really?_"

Rachael nodded. "Do you know if other people can remember their childhood? I've never gotten the courage to ask someone else."

Rachael blushed.

"I've never asked anyone else either." shrugged Nigel. "So who knows, maybe _nobody _remembers their childhood. But that doesn't seem right to me."

"I feel like I use to know once." said Rachael slowly. "Like… a long time ago. But now I don't. Do… d'you know why I said yes to dancing with you?"

The blush on her cheeks grew redder.

"My natural good looks and charm?" teased Nigel. He was surprised _(and very, very happy) _how easy it was to talk with her. It was like he'd known her forever.

Rachael laughed again. Nigel smiled, reveling in the sound.

"Besides that." grinned Rachael.

"No clue."

"You're gonna laugh at me."

"I won't." promised Nigel. "Pinky promise."

Rachael laughed again and hooked her pinky around his.

"Okay," said Rachael, her cheeks flaming. "I…I said yes because…because I feel like I've known you before. Like, we're old friends or something. It's weird."

"I don't think it's weird." said Nigel, shouting a little in order to be heard over the fast paced song that was now blaring from the speakers.

"Wanna go outside?" shouted Rachael "I can't hear anything in here."

Nigel nodded and extracted himself from the mob of students.

He and Rachael walked side by side out of the gym, squinting as the bright light from the hallway hit their eyes.

"Benches?" asked Rachael. Nigel nodded, and hesitantly took her hand.

She didn't pull away.

They slowly walked down the hallway, the music growing fainter. There were blushes on both their faces, and their hands were clasped gently between them.

Nigel pushed open the front door, a gust of cool air hitting his face. He and Rachael quietly walked to a nearby bench, positioned under a pool of light.

"So…" said Nigel awkwardly after they were seated.

The two sat there silently. Rachael brushed a piece of hair behind her ear. Nigel scuffed his heels on the concrete.

"Any siblings?" asked Nigel. Rachael raised an eyebrow.

"That's a little random."

"Just trying to make conversation." shrugged Nigel.

"One brother." said Rachael. "Harvey. He's fourteen."

"_Harvey_." mumbled Nigel. "Why does that name sound so familiar?"

Rachael shrugged. "You?"

"Nope." said Nigel. "No siblings."

"Cool." mumbled Rachael, silence falling over them.

"Uh… so… " said Nigel, cursing the break in his voice "you go to school dances a lot?"

"Most of them, yeah." shrugged Rachael "You?"

"Nah." said Nigel. "I'm not much of a dance person."

"So what _do _you like to do?"

* * *

"Rachael!" Nigel and Rachael glanced up in surprise at the fiery redhead standing before them.

"Hi Fanny." said Rachael, smiling. "Nigel, this is my best friend Fanny. Fanny, this is Nigel."

"Where have you been?" said Fanny, nodding her head at Nigel to acknowledge the introduction. "The dance is almost over!"

"Really?" said Nigel and Rachael together with surprise.

"Uh-huh." said Fanny. "Oh, and Drew's looking for you. Pretty sure he wants to ask you out."

Rachael rolled her eyes. "Drew is the biggest egomaniac I've ever met. Thanks, but no thanks."

"Anyway," said Fanny. "My mom's here to pick us up. Coming?"

"I'll be right there." said Rachael, turning to face Nigel.

"Bye," said Rachael "It was nice meeting you."

"Yeah." said Nigel. He took a deep breath to steady his nerves. "We should hang out again sometime."

"I'd like that." blushed Rachael. She stuck her hand in her pocket and pulled out a slip of paper. She passed it to Nigel. "Call me sometime."

Rachael smiled and waved, before walking over to Fanny.

"Nigel!" Nigel turned to see Wally and Kuki exiting the high school, his arm around her shoulders, and her arm around his waist. "Sorry I ditched you mate."

Nigel shrugged and smiled. "That's okay."

"How was the dance?" asked Kuki. Nigel's eyes strayed over to Rachael. She looked up and smiled.

"It was good." said Nigel, as he turned back to the two, a goofy grin spread across his face. "Really good."

"Really?" said Wally with surprise "But you hate dancing."

Nigel grinned.

"Who said anything about dancing?"

**

* * *

**

**A/N: Did this have a point? No. Not at all. I just felt guilty that I haven't written this couple as anything more then a supporting role. I figured they deserved a story where their romance was the main one, (even if said story has no plot and no point). **

**_Codename KND (c) Mr. Warburton _**


End file.
